06 January 2011 05:00

Before this game David Moyes clung to the gossamer hope that his side's ability to upset the richly-assembled aristocrats of English football hadn't vanished for ever.

Facing a transfer window hampered by a perennially empty wallet, in relegation form, and in dire need of inspiration, the Everton manager addressed the media.

Was he galled at the gulf between his club and Tottenham Hotspur, the fourth-placed darlings of the media enroute to Goodison?

How could he hope to compete against a club with enough quality players to feasibly field two teams capable of competing in the top flight?

There were even questions about the security of his job, after a dismal defeat by Stoke.

Had his ability to send out teams capable of defying investment levels finally waned?

But the Toffees manager is no quitter, because even when the odds suggest otherwise, he still believes in the uplifting, soul-enriching qualities of football to offer a revival.

And his definitive revival this season may have finally arrived at 9.45pm last night, as Everton stung Spurs at Goodison for the second time in successive campaigns.

It was a night of multiple revivals. The goals came, finally, only two of them, but significantly one was scored and the second created by a striker in royal blue - yes, this is not a typo - Louis Saha scored his first goal in 11 months.